Recently I read Michael Lankton's article "An Epidemic of Huge Pipes and Bad Technique" (http://cakeanddottle.com/pipe-rack/guides/85-an-epidemic-of-huge-pipes-and-bad-technique). He suggests that "Pipe smoking should be meditative. It is a sensory experience, and good tobacco should be enjoyed like good spirits or good cheese. It should force you to slow down. Your heart rate and blood pressure should decrease when smoking a pipe (my italics). Your mood should improve and whatever thoughts occupied your mind during the day should drift away."
I've been on medication for high blood pressure since 1998. The doctor told me that there's not much you can do to escape it; it helps to lose weight (I'm not/was not overweight), keep your triglycerides low, and exercise, but you'll never keep the blood pressure down without medication.
Last week at my annual checkup, the nurse took my blood pressure, and it was 128/74. I was ecstatic, but not surprised; since Christmas, I have changed my diet to be gluten free, 95% sugar free, and generally eating more vegetables nuts, and fruit (as well as bacon and eggs for breakfast nearly every day). I still get the same amount of exercise I have always gotten. BUT--I also stopped taking any medication four months ago, and started smoking my pipe again ten months ago, at which time I was a little concerned about what it might do to my blood pressure (not that concerned, though, since I'm smoking anyway).
Back to what Lankston says about heart rate and blood pressure, and I can see how it's a likely factor in lowering blood pressure, along with all the others.
I'm not suggesting that if you have high blood pressure, you should smoke your pipe more. YMMV, but for me it's a kind of natural medication. I haven't brought this up to my doctor yet--I'll see him again this week, and he's really old school, all the way to playing "The Deadly Dangers of Tobacco" videos on his monitor in the waiting room. But I think he needs to know what I've been doing and not doing. Should be an interesting conversation.
I know all the dangers of playing doctor, but my body is telling me how I'm doing. Anybody else make some similar discovery?
I've been on medication for high blood pressure since 1998. The doctor told me that there's not much you can do to escape it; it helps to lose weight (I'm not/was not overweight), keep your triglycerides low, and exercise, but you'll never keep the blood pressure down without medication.
Last week at my annual checkup, the nurse took my blood pressure, and it was 128/74. I was ecstatic, but not surprised; since Christmas, I have changed my diet to be gluten free, 95% sugar free, and generally eating more vegetables nuts, and fruit (as well as bacon and eggs for breakfast nearly every day). I still get the same amount of exercise I have always gotten. BUT--I also stopped taking any medication four months ago, and started smoking my pipe again ten months ago, at which time I was a little concerned about what it might do to my blood pressure (not that concerned, though, since I'm smoking anyway).
Back to what Lankston says about heart rate and blood pressure, and I can see how it's a likely factor in lowering blood pressure, along with all the others.
I'm not suggesting that if you have high blood pressure, you should smoke your pipe more. YMMV, but for me it's a kind of natural medication. I haven't brought this up to my doctor yet--I'll see him again this week, and he's really old school, all the way to playing "The Deadly Dangers of Tobacco" videos on his monitor in the waiting room. But I think he needs to know what I've been doing and not doing. Should be an interesting conversation.
I know all the dangers of playing doctor, but my body is telling me how I'm doing. Anybody else make some similar discovery?
